richard on our independent line for tom tarantino. >> caller: my question is i think our servicemen and women would be better served if we started bringing some of the billions we're spending in afghanistan back here and deployed those resources for employment here. i think the last time i looked at the defense budget, there was like $12 billion spent on the afghan security forces and that's more than we're spending on our joint strike fighter, i believe. so i'd like to you comment on that. thank you. >> thanks, richard. the bottom line is that in all these discussions about the defense budget and about you, know, cutting the defense budget, we have to make sure that what we cut and how we reappropriate funds does not take away from the personnel benefits. the bottom line is you don't balance the budget on the backs of the men and women who spent the last ten years sacrifices. whether it's having a few less strike fighters to pay for health care, whatever, i'm not a budget and defense expert. there has been a growing rhetoric coming out of the house, the senate and even the white house

. >> tom tarantino. he's the senior legislative associate for iraq and afghanistan veterans of america. he manages the legislative team and is responsible for executing their goals working with governments, congress, other decision making bodies and veterans organizations. tom is a former army captain who left service the in 2007 after ten years in the service. he spent a year in deployment with the 11th armored regiment in iraq where he earned both combat action badge and the bronze star. thank you for your service as well. >> thanks. >> hans von spakovsky -- did i do that right? >> that was close, but not quite. >> i actually practiced that a couple of times last night. but you'll correct me when your time comes. >> i have a tendency to do that. >> hans has a wide range of expertise in civil justice, immigration, election and related issues including campaign finance reform. voter fraud. enforcement of federal voting rights laws. election administrating. the standards and on and on. he served on the vi

. >> maryland is next for our guest, tom tarantino. tom, governments line. >> thanks for your service and commitment to our country. following what you just said, learning more about the stand down movement where nonprofits and companies come together and try to coordinate jobs and need social services and shelter and others for vets who have returned. what's your perception about the stand down movement? do you think it's a valuable as tote help vets that need services or we need more of that? what's your take on stand down? >> yeah, stand down is great. it has been highly effective. i think as a first step, you know, having that day where you have all the services in an easy access area where especially homeless vets who typically aren't counted, aren't treated, don't have access can't necessarily get into a v.a. very easily, where they can get into progra programs, where vets who need help and are there most importantly with other vets. one thing that we found, the key to helping vets get what they need is make sure they're around ot

. >> tom tarantino. tom is the senior legislative associate of iraq and afghanistan veterans of america where he manages the legislative team and is responsible for executing their legislative goals, working with governments, congress, other decision-making bodies and, of course, veterans organizations. tom is a former army captain who left service in 2007 after 10 years in the service. he spent a year into play with the 11th cavalry in iraq. thank you for your service as well. hans von spakovsky -- >> that was close but not quite. [laughter] >> i actually practice that a couple times last night but it kept coming at the same way but you will correct me when your time comes. >> i have a tendency to do that. >> hans has a wide range of expertise and experience in civil rights, justice, immigration, including campaign finance reform, vodafone come enforcement of federal voting rights laws, election administration, living standards and on and on and on. he served on the virginia committee of the u.s. commiss

you are on with tom tarantino of the iraq & afghanistan veterans of america.aller: thank you for having c- span. you are a voice in the dark. i want to say that this is concerning the iraq war where i believe congress laid down to bush when he came out with that yellow cake uranium think. there was no question that it showed there was no backbone in congress. another thing is with this private enterprise, these people who complain or say that we should have everything private enterprise, newt gingrich is one of them. he made over $1 million off of fannie mae and freddie mac which is government money coming into his coffers. i want to see how many historians which he claimed he was get paid the kind of money that he got paid. host: do you have a question for our guest? caller: i believe that a lot of these wars have been perpetuated. there has been no real basis for them to do what they do. they have squandered our national wealth. guest: i think this is a testament to the service of this generation of veterans. i know a lot of veterans who felt exactly like he

tom tarantino from the iraq and afghanistan veterans of america.00 eastern on c-span. >> next, chicago mayor rahm emanuel 6 part on the form of the presidential campaign. then michael bloomberg on his efforts to improve the city's education system. >> hoover argued a couple of things. he argued that american policy toward japan in 1940 and 1941 was rather provocative and perhaps in a juvenile way he said we are putting pins in a rattlesnake. eventually the rattlesnake will strike back. >> saturday night on "after words," the former presidents evaluation of decision starting with the second world war right to the cold war. also this weekend, jeff charlotte on religion and the inter-american. and a sunday night at 8:15, understanding our constitution by looking at "the odd clauses." >> now, a discussion on the 2012 presidential race. chicago mayor and former obama chief of staff rahm emanuel were among those talking about the reelection campaign and the campaign for the republican presidential nomination. joining him is rachel maddow, david brooks, a

later a ,tom tarantino talks about high unemployment among the returning veterans. >> the south carolinad c-span will be there for the results and a candidate speeches. follow the road to the white house to the florida primary, 10 days later. you can also follow c-span coverage online at c-span.org/ campaign2012. >> if you have a saudi prince who is part of the royal family of saudi arabia who has bought one of the largest news franchises in the world, you have to look at his motives. >> diana west to write about culture, politics, and the spread of islam in the western world. >> there is an argument that you should have to register as a foreign agent. >> more with former washington times editorial writer and syndicated columnist diana west, sunday night at 8:00. >> we gather to nights in a dramatic and deeply promising time in our history and in the history of manners. from the past 12 months, the world has known changes of almost biblical proportions. even now, months after the failed coup that doomed to fail system, i am not sure we have absorbed the full impact, the full import of wh

. >> on your screen tom tarantino, iraq and afghanistan veterans of america, he's their senior legislative associate. how does your organization differ from others that help iraq and afghanistan vets get job? >> we're the first and largest nonprofit advocacy organization for vet in iraq and afghanistan. we're a young are population and we define community a little differently so we have to redefine how we deliver services. primarily because there are so few of us. 2.4 million have served in iraq and afghanistan, less than 1% of the population so the traditional models of service delivery don't work. we are online. we understand community that's not defined by where we live but by our access to communication. the way we can't with the world is different from previous generations. it's a way we've been innovative so we can reach out and redesign the sense of community we had in the military. over the last two years, the joblessness epidemic in veterans has been worse. we're looking at an average unemployment rate of 12.9%. we don't have any real way to qualitatively and quantitatively tell t